Kiwi teams dominate at Underwater Hockey World Age Champs

After months of intense training, and a mountain of logistical challenges to bring the teams together from across the country, New Zealand's Under 24 and Under 19 Men's and Women's underwater hockey teams have once again proved themselves on the world stage at the 2026 CMAS Age Group Underwater World Championships in Gebze, Turkey last month.

Final results:

 U24 Women – Gold Medal – World Champions

 U24 Men – Gold Medal – World Champions

 U19 Women – Silver Medal

 U19 Men – 4th Place

In seven days of intense competition and drama, New Zealand produced some incredible sport, heading into the semi-finals in either first or second position in all four grades. The competition featured multiple overtime plays, and more than one golden globe finals, keeping both teams and spectators on their toes until the very last second - and beyond.

To have all four New Zealand teams finish in the top four in the world, with two World Championships and a silver medal, is an outstanding achievement, and a testament to the strength of age group underwater hockey in New Zealand.

"These results belong to a huge number of people. We'd like to acknowledge the coaches, managers, officials, volunteers, families and supporters who all made the campaign possible for the athletes, as well as everyone who helped fundraise and support the teams from home," says former New Zealand Elite player and U19 Women's coach Rebecca Brosnan, who is one of New Zealand's most capped female players. "It was incredibly rewarding seeing the teams support each other, during good times and bad, and the camaraderie between everyone was exceptional. We couldn't have asked for more."

Unbeatable U24 Women

The U24 Women's team brought home the gold, after not conceding a single goal over the entire seven-day tournament, scoring 107 goals in total. Having dispatched all previous opponents in the round robins, the Kiwi women beat hosts Turkey 8-0 in the final, once again displaying their superb attack skills.

Close calls for the U24 Men

The U24 Men's also took top honours in the final against South Africa, after some nailbiting quarter-final and semi-final games that had the crowds on the edge of their seats.

The U24 Men lost two games in their round robin (Australia 0-2, South Africa 0-2). However, the quarter-final against France was arguably the game of the tournament; despite New Zealand being the heavy favourites, Les Bleus produced an extraordinary display of pride and determination. The fired-up French came very close to producing the upset of the championships, standing toe-to-toe with the Blacks, with several opportunities to score a winning goal. Unfortunately, after several minutes pinned back near their own goal, frustration saw them committing fouls, resulting in three of Les Bleus being sent to the penalty bench. 

Despite the French now being outnumbered six to three in the water, the game went into overtime (five minutes each way) and then to golden goal (first to score wins), with the Kiwis finally scoring after more than 15 minutes of extra time. 

The U24 Men's semi-final against Colombia also produced some nervous moments for the Kiwis, with the game drawn 2-2 at the end, resulting in 10 minutes of overtime. Both teams scored, upping the scores to 3-3, before the Kiwis pulled a winner out of the hat at yet another sudden death (golden goal), taking them to the final in a 4.3 win.

Silver lining for U19 Women

This grade saw Colombia, France and Turkey coming in as the strongest teams in the division. There were plenty of close games, but the Kiwi battlers fought at every turn. They met fierce competitors Colombia in the final, and produced an outstanding performance, matching their opponents every step of the way. With just 30 seconds remaining, Colombia produced the winning goal to take the title 1-0. 

A tough way to lose such a closely-fought game, but the U19 women can be immensely proud of an exceptional tournament and a well-deserved silver medal.

U19 Men fight to the end

This grade saw some of the toughest competition it's seen for a while. Colombia, France, Turkey and Great Britain came into the competition as the U19 Men's strongest competition, but the Kiwis drew 1-1, and narrowly beat Colombia 2-1, France 3-1 and Great Britain 3-0 in the round robins.

Colombia took the win in the semi-final 2-0 in a tough battle, leaving the Kiwis playing France in the bronze medal playoff match. The game went into overtime after the teams drew 3-3, only for the match to remain level with both teams scoring. With the board sitting at 4-4, ultimately France scored the deciding goal to win the bronze. 

A heartbreaking end for the U19 Men, who left absolutely everything in the water, but a resilient performance the team can be very proud of. 

What's next?

"Our first focus was to celebrate what the teams have achieved, before the athletes returned to their clubs and regional programmes," explains Rebecca. "Many will continue preparing for future national and international competitions, while helping develop the next generation of players."

The U19 teams will battle it out next at the Schools National Competition in Rotorua from September 3-6th, 2026, while the U24 athletes return to Club underwater hockey to begin their buildup for the National Club Championships, to be held in Wellington on October 2-3rd.

Next up on the international calendar:

April 2027: Elite World Championships, France

October 2027: Masters World Championships, Singapore

July 2028: Age Group World Championships, Bunbury, Western Australia